GraceUnlimited

Remarkably, it often happens that when Christians grow in knowledge, their hearts also become smaller and colder. Yet compassion is commanded. It is also required for brotherly love. Such love doesn't fake it- it genuinely cares. Such care is faithful. It is soft. Love for the truth must produce compassion. What we say may be accurate, but it is ruined by the offensive ways we say it without compassion. In contrast, people who most deeply love the truth, are the most compassionate. Jesus and Paul are beautiful examples. The -truth-loving- Pharisees are the warning. Lack of compassion is not merely a personality, culture, or gender issue, but is a worship issue. If you worship a God whom you think is harsh, you live harshly. Those who have been shown compassion show compassion. People who don't see the greatness of God, struggle to forgive, because they can't see the magnitude of the forgiveness they have received. The first step in becoming compassionate is to fill your heart up with Jesus. Don't be content with little love for Him nor with the resulting lack of compassion.

You can't afford to stop listening to what the Bible says about sex. It guards you from talking foolishly about sex. Biblical wisdom is different to the voice of society. Sexual temptation lies to you. The lips of an adulteress drip honey yet sexual sin turns scalpel sharp and poison bitter. Porn, for example, brings guilt, shame, complicated problems, and hinders you from growing. Think of Jack Nicholson, who was a rich playboy actor, but is now an old lonely man. Sexual sin leads those who don't think about life. Unlike the world, the bible teaches Christians to run from sexual sin. Books, songs and jokes about sexual sin desensitise you toward sexual sin with lies. When you believe these lies, you even begin to defend sexual sin. God gratefully forgives sexual sinners and has a far more satisfying design for sex. it is beautiful in marriage. Don't stop drinking, Scripture says, but drink in the right place. God is not against sex. he is against anything that cheapens and destroys sex. Greater intimacy makes sex better, not worse. Take care of your own garden rather than longing for the well-tended gardens of others. Sexual purity is not only right, but it is good too. Why die- Listen to truth. Identify sexual lies. Run from temptation. Embrace God's beautiful design gratefully. Build yourself up in your faith.

The gospel is the only important message in all of history. If this is true, you need to know exactly what this message is. You may have heard many years of preaching but never heard the gospel. Can you identify the fact that so much of what is called the gospel today is a damnable lie- You absolutely must be able to tell the difference. Some insist that it is always God's will to be health and wealthy. These are achieved by the things you do. For example, do you believe that the Old Testament promises, unaltered, are yours- Do you believe you can't honour God when you are poor- Do you believe that if you give to God He will give more back- Do you believe that faith is a force that you can use to your own advantage- Prosperity doctrine is dangerous because it is not from the Bible. The Bible is about God and His grace through Christ, not about what we can get out of God. It is about God all the way though from creation to the fulfilment of His purpose for His glory. Prosperity preaching doesn't teach you how to face suffering or to prepare for death. To fight against these lies, fight against greed and propagate the true gospel of grace.

Yes, money is shown to be a blessing in Proverbs. Yet Proverbs also warns people against trusting in it. Wealth, for example, provides security in a rich person's imagination. But money can't prevent a rich person from dying. Also, there are other things that are far more important that getting money. Wisdom, for example, is more valuable. People may relocate for a better job, but seldom for a better church. The fear of God, love, humility, peace, a good spouse, honesty and reputation are better than money. Poverty can be frightening when needs constantly overwhelm resources. Poverty repels friends and invites oppression. Wealth also brings disadvantages. For example, you never really know who your friends are. Wealth interferes with your relationships with others. Rich people can become tempted to answer a poor person harshly. They can consider themselves to be experts in all areas of life. But then a person who really does know may not correct them because of the obstacle of the rich person's riches. The wise person desires enough to meet his needs, not to meet any need. That, then, is what we should want for other people too. Contentment and godliness are great gain.

We all speaks so much and Proverbs shows us that what we say and how we say it are very important. The writer compares good speech to fine silver. Speech also has power, therefore it needs to be wise. A fool's mouth ruins him. God's word is powerful but fools keep babbling and justify themselves, argue, claim to already know, try to distract. Such a fool doesn't even realise how ruined he is. Speech, like air-borne disease, affects other people. But speech can also do huge good. Your speech every day will help people to trust you. A record of truthful speaking helps a person who falls into an unusual situation that may appear suspicious. You can change other people's lives through your words. Whole marriages can be destroyed through negative talk. Words are too powerful to not think about them before saying them. changes in speech come from changes in our hearts. This is something you need to deal with today.

Some people have a problem with the concept of the fear of God today. They don't believe that God should be feared because that is a negative concept. Before embracing that assumption, consider the fact that translation is a complicated matter and it would be wise to consider what the Bible is saying about the fear of the Lord before dismissing it. English is a precise language, while Hebrew is not. Hebrew packs a lot of meaning into fewer words. Therefore, concepts like love, trust and hope all find a home in the Hebrew word fear. Biblical fear, rather than driving you away from God, makes you want to come to Him. To fear God is to be in awe of God- to be astounded by Him. This is what the heavenly host sings about. They are amazed by God's understanding, grace, patience and salvation. To fear such a God is foolish. To not fear God is to be amazed at something other than God. Fearing God is also a blessing to the God-fearer because God Himself teaches him and treats him as a friend. How do you come to fear God- Just look at Him- If you take the time to enjoy Him, you will be amazed.